Smith, Striking Matches debut

Tuesday, March 24, 2015 – Canaan Smith finally releases something more than a single today as he releases a self-titled five-song EP. Smith realized his first single, "We Got Us," in 2012 and last years made the top 30 with "Love You Like That."

Striking Matches, a duo consisting of Sarah Zimmermann and Justin Davis, release their debut, "Nothing But the Silence," on IRS Nashville. The two met at Nashville's Belmont University in 2007. The disc covers country, blues and rock with both taking lead vocals and sometimes exchanging lead vocals in a song. T Bone Burnett produced the 11 songs.

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CD reviews for Canaan Smith

Canaan Smith closes his new album with the title track, a tribute to his brother who recently passed away in a car crash. Smith sings its words over a hushed, reverent musical backing as the song's words seemingly praise the vehicle, rather than dwelling too much on the gory details of Nathaniel's death. But once Smith sings, "It was a hell of a ride," you realize immediately he's singing about his beloved brother, not merely a motor vehicle. It's the kind of strong »»»

Virginia-native, Belmont educated, Canaan Smith was deemed as "One to Watch in 2012" after his debut single "We Got Us" charted that year. Still, it was nearly three years before his next single "Love You Like That" dropped this past summer. With more than 200,000 downloads, it went number 1 on Sirius XM, but fans have been forced to wait until now for an EP release.
The lead off, "Love You Like That" is a tale of a self-proclaimed "nitty-gritty »»»

Editorial: Walking the talk –
When names like Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Waylon and the Hag are invoked, you're talking hard core country. These are the touchstones of country , the guys who made country music what it was and still is (or maybe can be). When these folks would sing about being down-and-out and the rough-and-tumble, they knew of what they were singing about. Fast forward a few years to the country singers of today. »»»

Concert Review: Pistol Annies hit the targets –
Pistol Annies, the all-star trio comprised of Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley, made the last stop of its short tour a downtown Los Angeles date. This was the last show, that is, until after the pregnant Presley gives birth to her child. Traveling in support of the act's third album "Interstate Gospel," these talented... »»»

Concert Review: Williams brings the joy back –
It's not as if Lucinda Williams has been idle. Far from it this year, but 20 years on, Williams decided to trot out her masterpiece "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" as the centerpiece of her tour. Music and artist have held up exceedingly well.
Williams had always been a well thought of performer, although she was not too big when it came... »»»

Suffice it to say that the past has always loomed large throughout Chip Taylor's career. That's all the more obvious if only for the fact that Taylor wrote some of the biggest pop hits of the '60s, "Wild Thing"... »»»

Dan Tyminski (known simply as "Tyminski" on his 2017 release "Southern Gothic") has traditional music roots and unassailable bluegrass street cred especially given his membership in Alison Krauss' Union Station. He is also a powerful songwriter and has been writing songs for himself and others for years now.... »»»

Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn have powerhouse individual talents; each has followed an estimable career path to where they find themselves today: making complex, but spare, records, writing music together and touring with their son Juno. Their new release, "Echoes In The Valley" features mostly songs written by Fleck and Washburn, banjos, Washburn's strong vocals and very little else.... »»»

Rodney Crowell's "Christmas Everywhere" is a (mostly) melancholy collection of songs, with Christmas time as its setting. It's a strong set of carefully worded tunes, set to widely varying musical backings. »»»